Elastic Floor Panel Fiber Mat Adhesion

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing floor panels with polyurethane cores face challenges in achieving reliable adhesion to a subsurface and maintaining improved impact sound insulation and elasticity, particularly when not glued to the substructure, due to inadequate bonding between the panel's backside and adhesive.

Innovation Solution

The floor panel is coated on its back with a fiber mat, such as a glass or PET fiber mat sealed by a barrier layer, allowing liquid adhesive to penetrate between the fibers for uniform bonding, while the barrier layer prevents adhesive penetration into the core, enhancing the panel's elasticity and stability.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the back of the floor panel is ground or provided with a surface structure to improve adhesive bonding, then the bonding between adhesive and panel backside is enhanced, but the impact sound insulation and elasticity properties are not sufficiently improved and the bonding remains unreliable

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveadhesive bonding reliabilityVSAvoidmanufacturing complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies a porous fiber mat layer on the backside of the floor panel. This fiber mat consists of interconnected fibers creating a three-dimensional porous structure that allows liquid adhesive to penetrate deeply and form strong mechanical interlocking bonds. The porous structure provides significantly better adhesive bonding compared to traditional ground or embossed surfaces, while maintaining manufacturing simplicity through direct application of the fiber mat layer during panel production.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #31Porous materials

Solution Approach 2:

The patent creates a composite structure by combining the fiber mat material with the polyurethane core and the adhesive. The fiber mat acts as an intermediate layer that enhances the overall bonding performance. This composite approach integrates multiple materials (fiber mat, polyurethane core, adhesive) to achieve superior bonding reliability that neither the core material nor adhesive alone could provide.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #40Composite materials

2Object-affected harmful factors

If the floor panel is designed with enhanced rear side structure to improve impact sound insulation and elasticity, then these acoustic and mechanical properties are improved, but the dimensional stability may be compromised

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveimpact sound insulationVSAvoiddimensional stability
Core Design Contradiction:
Object-affected harmful factorsVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies local quality by providing the fiber mat layer specifically on the backside of the floor panel where impact sound insulation is needed, while keeping the core structure intact for dimensional stability. The fiber mat creates a soft, elastic interface layer that absorbs impact sounds and allows controlled deformation, while the rigid polyurethane core maintains the overall panel shape and dimensions. This localized application resolves the contradiction by enhancing acoustic properties only where needed without compromising overall structural stability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

3Reliability

If a fiber mat is applied to the back of the floor panel to improve adhesive bonding, then bonding reliability is enhanced, but adhesive may penetrate into the core through the fibers

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveadhesive bondingVSAvoidcore integrity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies partial action by controlling adhesive penetration to occur only to the extent needed for strong bonding - enough to saturate the fiber mat and create mechanical interlocking, but not so much that it compromises the core structure. The fiber mat acts as a barrier that absorbs and retains the adhesive within its three-dimensional structure, providing sufficient bonding strength while preventing excessive adhesive from reaching and potentially damaging the polyurethane core.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

This solution provides a reliable and durable bonding mechanism, improving impact sound insulation and force introduction, especially when the panels are laid loosely, and maintains dimensional stability without external stress.

Implementation Method 1

A liquid adhesive that has been applied to the screed can penetrate between the fibers of the mat

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectCapillary action: Capillary Action

Implementation Method 2

Due to the comparatively loose cohesion of its fibers, the fiber mat can have a certain elasticity

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectElasticity: Elasticity

Implementation Method 3

The fibrous structure of the mat is sealed by a barrier layer on the side facing the core

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectPhysical barrier: Physical Containment

Data Source

PatentEP3055130B1Elastic floor panel
Publication Date: 2017.07.12 WPT GMBH
  • EP3055130B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3055130B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3055130B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

The invention relates to an elastic floor panel (10) comprising a dimensionally stable core (18) of polyurethane and a layered composite (24) arranged on the core (18). The floor panel is characterised in that the underlayer of the floor panel (10) is coated with a fibre mat (20), the fibres of which consist of glass, PET, PP, polyester or renewable raw materials and the side of the mat facing the core (18) is sealed by a barrier layer (22).